New head for Ordinariate

Fr Carl Reid is the new head of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross. PHOTO: ACBC

Pope Francis appointed Canadian priest Fr Carl Reid the second Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross on 26 March – a role he will take up in August.

Pope Francis has also accepted the resignation of Msgr Harry Entwistle, who has served as leader of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of the Southern Cross since it was established in 2012.

The Personal Ordinariates, of which Our Lady of the Southern Cross was the third in the world, were established to provide a way for groups of Anglicans to be received into full communion with the Catholic Church – as Catholics – while retaining distinctive elements of their theological, spiritual and liturgical patrimony.

Fr Reid grew up in the Anglican Church of Canada before going on to serve as a deacon, minister and suffragan bishop in the Anglican Catholic Church in Canada. He was later received into full communion with the Catholic Church and was ordained a Catholic priest in January 2013.

He is currently dean of all Canadian parishes of the Personal Ordinariate of the Chair of St Peter, which also covers the United States.

Australian Catholic Bishops Conference president Archbishop Mark Coleridge said Fr Reid’s experience of leadership in the Anglican Catholic Church in Canada and the Ordinariate in North America will be a great asset to the Ordinariate in Australia as it continues to grow.

“The Personal Ordinariate is a blessing to the whole Church in Australia and we look forward to welcoming Fr Carl later this year, including as a member of the Bishops Conference,” Archbishop Coleridge said.

“Believers of various traditions make up the rich tapestry of the Catholic Church in Australia, and the members of the Ordinariate are among them.”

Fr Reid said that in addition to the shared British heritage of Australia and Canada, there will also be similarly vast distances that he will need to travel. So, too, the size and shape of the Ordinariate in both countries are also comparable.

“I understand that the Australian Ordinariate communities are of varying sizes, but mostly modest in terms of faithful adherents, which is very similar to Canada,” he said.

“Therefore, looking ahead, my particular challenge will be to continue the good work begun by Msgr Entwistle, not only in establishing new communities, but also in encouraging growth of those communities already in place.”

Fr Reid noted that the Ordinariate faithful work closely with the broader Catholic Church in a range of ways, including shared liturgical celebrations and community events.

Although he had expected his current role in British Columbia would be his last, Fr Reid had “pledged to serve Mother Church in whatever capacity deemed appropriate, so we are now looking forward to the challenge”.

Beyond the practical planning that is required, Fr Reid said the months between now and his installation at St Mary’s Cathedral in Sydney on August 27 would also involve “prayer that I will be faithful to this particular calling”.

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